Starter won't fire, 1959 Corvette

[Timothy B.]

Re: Starter won't fire, 1959 Corvette

Eric,

From your description of the operation it sounds like the pinion gear is hard on the ring gear. Try a few shims to lower the starter if it will allow, if not, are the starter drives the same as later year starters. The gear diameter may be to large.

[Eric H.]

Re: Starter won't fire, 1959 Corvette

Thanks again guys for all your thoughts. I haven't had time to work further, but should try to answer some questions this weekend. Tim, there is no way to shim the starter on this car. The gears of both starters are the same...and one starter worked fine for the last five years, so I don't think there's a gear discrepancy. Paul, you may be on to something, both logical suggestions. I will try another power source asap...it is possible that the start-box does not have adequate amperage. I was not aware, but becoming more aware now, that a battery that measures 13.5 volts may be, as you say, unable to provide adequate amperage. I believe the pinion gear on both starters performed exactly the same. I actually only observed one starter, laying under the car while actuating it, but the other starter made exactly the same noise. And, yes Tom, both starters had different solenoids. The remanufactured starter appears to have a brand new solenoid. That being said, failure of the solenoid(s) is still a possiblilty. We'll investigate that, and consider a starter-under-load test if a new power source fails to crank the engine. I'll post my results as soon as I find out this weekend. Again, thank you all for the time you took to express your thoughts. I sure would like to drive the 'ol '59 again....

[Eric H.]

Re: Starter won't fire, 1959 Corvette

Paul and Rod, you guys get the "brilliant" award for the weekend. Two issues you mentioned were exactly the problem. The battery measured 13 volts, but I took it out of the car and it would not turn the starter on the bench. I still can't figure out (with regards to Ohm's law) how you can have 13 volts but no current. Bill said to check it again and, indeed, that battery was dead in the water. Also the booster/starter unit did not have enough power to turn over the motor either. I took the battery out of my Toyota, and it began to turn the engine over about a half revolution. A brand new 700 amp Optima, fired the car right up...sounded good for a change. I still can't figure out why that engine is so hard to turn over, when the devices I used will start "ordinary" cars....any ideas? I have appreciated everyone's help and input.

[Erich C.]

Re: Starter won't fire, 1959 Corvette

Check your timing. Too much initial timing ( advance ) will cause the engine to be hard to turn over when starting. What is the condition of your distributor ?
Does the breaker plate ( vac. adv. ) and centrifugal advance weights move freely without binding.

[Rod K.]

Re: Starter won't fire, 1959 Corvette

I'd check starter alignment to be sure there's no binding when it is engaged? Mounting surfaces clean and flat, no burrs, dirt, etc., which might cause it to be misaligned. Is the brace from the front of the starter to the block installed?

Try pulling the coil secondary lead and crank it to see if the drive releases properly when it doesn't start. Don't forget to turn off the ignition key after you do this test. You don't need to burn the points down after all this. Good luck.

[William C.]

Re: Starter won't fire, 1959 Corvette

Well, depending on the Toyota engine, it has lower compression and about 1/3 to 1/2 the cubic inches of the Corvette, and a more modern starter motor design. A lot of technology changes to allow the use of smaller (and lighter) batteries over the last 50 years. The "jump pak" is designed for the newer engines also.

[Paul J.]

Re: Starter won't fire, 1959 Corvette

Paul and Rod, you guys get the "brilliant" award for the weekend. Two issues you mentioned were exactly the problem. The battery measured 13 volts, but I took it out of the car and it would not turn the starter on the bench. I still can't figure out (with regards to Ohm's law) how you can have 13 volts but no current. Bill said to check it again and, indeed, that battery was dead in the water. Also the booster/starter unit did not have enough power to turn over the motor either. I took the battery out of my Toyota, and it began to turn the engine over about a half revolution. A brand new 700 amp Optima, fired the car right up...sounded good for a change. I still can't figure out why that engine is so hard to turn over, when the devices I used will start "ordinary" cars....any ideas? I have appreciated everyone's help and input.

Thanks for the feedback, Eric, but I only get the award for the weekend? I'm trying to replace Ray Magliozzi when he retires.

Hopefully, the "hard to start" condition is exactly what Bill suggests. I've seen high compression V-8's that would barely turn over, but they started. If it was still slow to turn with the Optima, it may not be fully charged, from sitting in storage. Try topping off the charge.

Paul

[Joe R.]

Re: Starter won't fire, 1959 Corvette

Paul and Rod, you guys get the "brilliant" award for the weekend. Two issues you mentioned were exactly the problem. The battery measured 13 volts, but I took it out of the car and it would not turn the starter on the bench. I still can't figure out (with regards to Ohm's law) how you can have 13 volts but no current. Bill said to check it again and, indeed, that battery was dead in the water. Also the booster/starter unit did not have enough power to turn over the motor either. I took the battery out of my Toyota, and it began to turn the engine over about a half revolution. A brand new 700 amp Optima, fired the car right up...sounded good for a change. I still can't figure out why that engine is so hard to turn over, when the devices I used will start "ordinary" cars....any ideas? I have appreciated everyone's help and input.

Eric,

The answer to how you can have 13 Vdc but no current would be found deep in battery chemistry / physics. I certainly don't claim to know the answer. I think the real problem is that you have 13 Vdc but not enough current to satisfy the demands of the load. If the starter needs say 100 A to turn and the battery can only deliver 50 A, well that ain't gonna work worth a hoot.

Joe